The present invention relates to concentrated low-sudsing liquid detergent compositions. Such compositions contain, as the active detersive ingredients, a nonionic surfactant component and an anionic surfactant component. The compositions may also contain an alkanolamine, a minor proportion of a fatty acid corrosion inhibitor and/or an alkali metal base.
Concentrated liquid detergent compositions are well known in the art. Usually such compositions (see, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,908,651; 2,920,045; 3,272,753; 3,393,154; and Belgian Pat. Nos. 613,165 and 665,532) contain a synthetic organic detergent component which is generally anionic, nonionic or mixed anionic-nonionic in nature; an inorganic builder salt; and a solvent, usually water and/or alcohol. These compositions frequently contain a hydrotrope or solubilizing agent to permit the addition of sufficient quantities of surfactant and builder salt to provide a reasonable volume usage/performance ratio. Other compositions, like the preferred compositions of this invention, have not contained builders. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,528,925 discloses substantially anhydrous liquid detergent compositions which consist of an alkyl aryl sulfonic acid, a nonionic surface active agent and an alkanolamine component. U.S. Pat. No. 2,875,153 discloses liquid detergent compositions containing a nonionic surfactant component and a sodium soap component. U.S. Pat. No. 2,543,744 discloses a low-foaming dishwashing composition comprising a nonionic, water-soluble, synthetic detergent and a water-soluble soap in the form of an alkali metal, ammonium or amine salt. The copending application of Jones et al U.S. Ser. No. 591,987 filed June 30, 1975 and now abandoned for Liquid Detergent Composition discloses similar compositions in which the more usual sodium alkylbenzene sulfonate is replaced by a magnesium or calcium anionic surfactant.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,663,445 relates to liquid cleaning and defatting compositions containing a nonionic surfactant, an alkanolamine-neutralized anionic surfactant, alkanolamine and fatty acid.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,864,399 and the copending application of Collins, Ser. No. 521,414, filed Nov. 6, 1974, entitled Liquid Detergent Compositions, relate to detergent mixtures comprising a high ratio of nonionic to anionic surfactant and free alkanolamine.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,709,838; 3,697,451; 3,554,916; 3,239,468; 2,947,702; 2,551,634; British Pat. Nos. 900,000; 842,813; 759,877; Canadian Pat. No. 615,583; and Defensive Publications T903,009 and T903,010 disclose a variety of detergent compositions containing mixed nonionic-anionic surfactants, both with and without alkanolamines. All of the above references are incorporated by reference and can be suppressed by the silicone suds-suppressing agents disclosed hereinafter.
As can be seen from the foregoing, a substantial effort has been expended in developing low-built and builder-free detergent compositions in liquid form. Yet, there are several problems associated with the art-disclosed compositions which render them less than optimal for widescale use.
Especially, many of the prior art compositions give too many suds when used, e.g., in front-loading automatic washers.
The copending application of Collins, et al., entitled Liquid Detergent Compositions, Ser. No. 376,641, filed July 5, 1973, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference, teaches that certain ethylene oxide-based nonionic surfactants can be used at high concentrations in liquid detergent compositions, in combination with alkanolamines and certain anionic surfactants, and without the need for fatty acid-based stabilizers. The compositions disclosed by Collins, et al., provide builder-free, liquid detergent compositions which exhibit both excellent pre-wash and through-the-wash fabric cleansing.
It is an object of this invention to provide concentrated liquid detergent compositions which exhibit excellent pre-wash and through-the-wash fabric cleaning, and which do not produce excessive suds during use.
This and other objects are obtained herein, as will be seen from the following disclosure.